Fear Can Be A Good Thing?
by luverofjamesandlily
Summary: Ariadne is scared of thunder, and who is going to save her? I know it's a little cliche, but please read! A/A of course!


**I just wanted to write a cute little story. Hope you like! And I do not own anything of Inception, no matter how much I would love to have a real Arthur! **

The warehouse was silent except for the scratching of my pencil. My brow furrowed, I couldn't seem to quite capture the layout how I wanted it to be. I sighed, pushed the papers away from myself and rubbed my hands over my face. I had put off the designs for too long, and I wasn't going to let myself leave without completing something.

I shuddered at the sudden burst of thunder that shook the building. Ever since I had been stuck outside during a storm as a child, I couldn't stand thunderstorms. I dug through my drawer, searching for my iPod. Putting my headphones in, I cranked up the volume, trying to drown out the soul-shaking thunder.

Humming along with my music, I got back to work, actually concentrating, and successfully finishing one of the papers. As I finished up, I turned my music down a bit, now it was just giving me a headache. I stiffened, was that a door's slam I heard? It couldn't be, the others had left hours ago, leaving me to finish up. I decided to call it a night as soon as I finished with my last design.

As I was stuffing my things back into their random-yet-organized places, I heard another sound, this time convincing me there was someone else there with me. I glanced around my desk, grabbing onto a heavy flashlight, and walked carefully over to the doorway, waiting.

The footsteps came closer, until they were right outside the door. Bracing myself, I held my breath and prepared to swing as the door opened. I began to swing, only to have the flashlight wrenched from my hand and held away from me.

As I tried to run, the person grabbed my arm, effectively holding me in place.

"For God's sake, Ariadne. Who were you expecting?" Arthur's exasperated voice floated to my ears. I relaxed instantly upon hearing his voice.

"Arthur! You know you can't sneak up on me like that!"

"I wasn't aware I was sneaking up on you." He replied.

I wasn't able to respond, as an even louder clap of thunder sounded. I flinched and removed my arm from Arthur's hold. I walked over to my desk, trying to compose myself before turning back to face him.

"Are you… afraid of thunder?" He asked, a look of surprise on his face.

"Of course not. Don't be ridiculous." Trying to be brave, but I failed, as I let out a little shriek at the next boom.

"You are." He said, with a look of wonder on his face. "I didn't know that."

"Sorry, you must have missed my memo."

"What are you doing here so late?" He asked, ignoring my sarcasm.

"I think the real question is, why are you back so late?"

"Nope, I asked you first." He said with a grin.

"I wanted to finish up some work." I kept my response short. "Your turn."

"I left some work here, I wanted to grab it."

"Are you aware it is," I glanced at the clock," 2:30 in the morning?"

"Yes, I am perfectly aware of that."

Choosing not to reply, I sat back down, and took out my work again. If Arthur was there, I might as well get some work done.

He also sat at his desk. There was a moment of silence until the next burst of thunder, along with a huge streak of lightning that lighted up the windows. I almost fell out of my chair at that one. Instantly, he was at my side, taking my arm and sitting me back down. He knelt at my side, as he looked up into my face.

"Are you ok?" He asked softly.

I swallowed. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" I smiled weakly.

He hesitated, trying to find the right words. "Most people don't fall out of their seats when it thunders." He said gently.

"Um… ok, I might not be _fine_. But I got it under control."

"Really?" He looked dubious.

I was about to reassure him, but I jumped once again at the next burst of thunder.

"Yep." I said, nodding my head, hoping he would buy it and leave it alone.

"You are such an awful liar." He declared.

I couldn't think of a reply to that without insulting him, which I didn't want to do. I already felt safer, just with him by me, so I just nodded.

"I don't like thunder." I admitted in a whisper, hoping he would understand.

"It's ok." He soothed, as another bang of thunder made me cringe.

"I know." I tried to play it off smoothly. He rolled his eyes at me.

I tried to ignore the blush settling on my cheeks, as he continued to look at me. I pushed my papers around and tried to start work again, but somehow landed in Arthur's lap at the next sound of thunder.

"If you wanted to get closer, you could've just asked." He smirked at me. I opened my mouth to reply, but ended up burying my face in his neck at the next clap of the annoying sound.

His hand rubbed my back soothingly.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled into his neck, still hiding. I was worried about what he was going to do when I looked him in the eyes.

"Its fine, Ari." He laughed.

I got up quickly after a moment, and sat at my desk. I could feel his eyes on my, watching me push papers around, writing notes. He slowly got up and went to his own desk, but I could still feel his eyes on me.

I nervously started sketching a drawing, just for fun. As it took shape, I saw it was Arthur, Arthur and I. I was going to throw it away, but something made me finish it. I paid much more attention to Arthur than myself, shading in his eyes and hair, adding small details. Before I knew it, it was done. I inspected it, looking for some mistake, but it was nearly perfect, one of my best. I was going to fold it up, but Arthur's voice cut in.

"May I have that?" He asked quietly.

"Oh, you don't want this." I protested at once.

He came up and placed it behind his back before I knew it.

"I really do." He breathed, looking into my eyes.

"Than, yes, I suppose." I said, hardly breathing.

Before I knew it, he crashed his lips to mine, slipping his hands on me, one on my waist, and the other behind my head. I let my hands wind through his hair. We pulled apart when we needed air.

I could only look at him, wondering.

"You have no idea how long I've been waiting to do that." He said, smiling slightly.

"I think I do." I told him, pulling him back in for another kiss.

**I just needed to write something! I hope you liked it, and I would really appreciate some feedback, this is the first thing not Harry Potter or Twilight related, so I would like to know how I did! Please review, and thanks for reading!**

**Allie**


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